Brian Johnson: Very good size and rhythm on the mound. Johnson is a big, well proportioned athlete, although his fastball velocity doesn't match his size. He works mainly in the upper-80s, peaking around 90-91. He started the game off a little shaky, working down but missing quite a bit, while also trying to work the outer half of the plate against RH hitters. That led to a few early runs, but he settled down nicely and pitched more aggressively, like I've seen of him in the past, in innings 2-4. He just looked impatient early, nibbling more than he usually does. His low-80s slider is a good pitch, as his his slow overhand mid-70s curve. He was also throwing a lot of CBs early, seemingly not trusting his FB/command.

JaCoby Jones: Jones, similar to Marrero, is a great looking athlete whose upside will ultimately depend on how well he adjusts to higher level pitching. He's strong throughout with broad shoulders, and I could see him settling in at an OF spot down the road, possibly CF given his speed. He showed his strength by driving a ball to the left-centerfield gap that carried to the wall. He has the speed to swipe some bases, although could slow down over time as he continues to mature and add strength.

Kurt McCune: Similar to his LSU starting mates, McCune has a tall, skinny and projectable frame. He has broad shoulders and a narrow waist, suggesting plenty of room for added strength and the possibility of him adding a few ticks to his upper-80s fastball that peaks in the low-90s. He has long and lean wiry strong limbs and also throws a hard downer mid-70s curveball. He hit the corners well in this game, although his fastball is on the straight side and doesn't have the velo to get away with mistakes. He also threw a handful of changeups that he maintained his arm action well.

Mike Zunino: In both Thursday's and Friday's game Zunino drove a belt high fastball to deep centerfield, a shade to the right field side, for doubles, showing his ability to stay back and drive quality fastballs. He has really improved his swing and overall approach since his freshman year, using his lower half well as part of his swing while taking confident, aggressive hacks. One of those swings was against Gausman on Friday, and also hit a single against him by drilling a low outside fastball through the left side of the infield. Gausman did get Zunino swinging on a diving slider in the 7th, but Zunino added an RBI double in the eighth off of Joey Bourgeois by ripping another fastball down the left field line. Zunino's defense behind the plate has always been one of his strengths, and his maturation as a hitter could lead to him being taken among the top 1-3 overall picks come June.

Jonathan Crawford: I went into much greater detail on Crawford a few weeks ago, but every time I see him I'm surprised that his numbers are as high as they are. I must catch all of his good starts. Everything he throws moves, and he has gotten better commanding his repertoire, as previously he looked as though he wasn't sure where his stuff was going.

Kevin Gausman: The ball was really exploding out of his hand in this game, a big difference from when I watched him pitch 2 weekends ago, but similar to how he threw a week ago. Similar to a week ago, he was hit around a little bit despite having ace stuff. He throws downhill and does a nice job working the lower half of the zone. He continues to develop his slider, although in this game it was used more as a wipeout pitch than something he uses to throw strikes and get ahead in the count. He is able to throw strikes with both his sharp breaking curveball and his nice fading changeup, giving him a legit 4-pitch mix that includes his 93-99 FB, 85-87 SL, 80-81 CH and 76-79 CB, a nice variety of movement and velocities. He also has a pretty good pickoff move and repeats his delivery well. As he continues to get better and better, it's easy to envision him being the No. 1 overall pick to the Astros, as I have thought he could go that high for over a year now.

Joey Bourgeois: Throw Bourgeois into the mix among LSU's promising, projectable pitching staff. His best pitch is his curveball with sharp 12-6 downward break. He spots his fastball well, although it can be straight, as I envision his future as a reliever given how dominant he can be with his curve over short stints. He has a modest, medium athletic build and a low waist, hits the corners well and has enough velocity to rack up Ks.

Austin Maddox: Maddox is such a big dude that I've seen several times already this year. He pitched in both games, throwing mostly sliders, although looked more comfortable in his 2 inning stint on Friday that he did his 1 inning appearance on Thursday. He looked anxious on Thursday, overthrowing some, but recorded 3 relatively quick flyball outs. On Friday he K'd 3 in his 2 innings, getting 1 looking and 2 swinging on his dynamic slider. I'd really like to see how he looks in a starting role, although his delivery, approach and demeanor may be better suited to short relief.

Steven Rodriguez: Rodriguez is a big LHP with broad shoulders and good overall size. He has a nasty cutter to go along with his upper-80s fastball, and his low 3/4 delivery creates very good deception. It's easy to envision him pitching in the big leagues someday soon in a similar role.]]>Thu, 12 Apr 2012 12:51:53 GMThttps://www.perfectgame.org/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=7553
Message from pebertOregon State vs. Arizona State

Deven Marrero: If you don't already know about Marrero he is a great all-around athlete with a well-proportioned, tapered frame. He went 2-5 in this game, with his 1st hit being a push bunt infield single in which he showed very good straight line speed down the line. His second hit he smoked a slider on the outer half through the hole on the left side of the infield. He hasn't been driving the ball much this spring and overall his numbers are down, but he continues to excel defensively and has promising upside.

Brady Rodgers: Rodgers is all about pitchability. I had the chance to see him first-hand last summer for Team USA when the CNT travelled to Omaha to face Team Japan. 80 of the 106 pitches he tossed in this game were called for strikes, as he went 8 innings, allowing 7 hits, 2 unearned runs and 1 walk while striking out 6. He also posted a 13 to 4 groundout to flyout ratio, a very good indication of his ability to induce weak ground balls. His pitch sequencing is excellent, and while he's not a flamethrower, his success is predicated off of the command of his sinking 87-89 fastball that peaks around 90-91. He throws a sharp, slow overhand curveball at 70-74, a sharp 82-83 slider and a 79-81 changeup. He sets up hitters well, working away before busting them inside, or even climbing the ladder to get some swinging on high heat. His fastball looks to be thrown harder than it is given how well he commands it and uses his offspeed stuff to accentuate it. His delivery is clean and he's a good overall athlete. While his ceiling his limited, his floor is very high, as he has a good chance to not only get to the big-leagues, but do so quickly.

Dan Child: I had the opportunity to follow Child last summer when he was named PG's No. 9 prospects in the Northwoods League when he was throwing in the 93-94 range with a sharp 82-83 slider. That is the exact repertoire he showed in this game, although he tended to rely more on his slider than to trust his fastball. There is quite a bit of deception to his delivery, and he gets a lot of sink on his fastball, which in this game was 89-93. His slider was 81-85, showing very good break down and away from right-handed hitters. The throws over the top and has some downhill plane to his delivery. He's a big-bodied athlete with a sturdy, thick build, which drew some comparisons to Brad Lidge last summer from the scouts and coaches I talked to. He works slow, nearly Steve Tracshel slow, and he looks to lull hitters asleep before his FB/SL explodes out of his hand. He had a strong outing outside of a 4-run 3rd inning.

Michael Conforto: Conforto is a freshman outfielder for the Beavers that is enjoying a very good season at the plate. He has a crouched stance and a patient approach with an easy/smooth LH swing. He went with an outside fastball from Rodgers to stroke a double down the left field line in the first inning, and later worked the count to draw a walk, the only one Rodgers issues, in the 3rd. It's easy to envision him hitting for more and more power as he has a loose, strong frame to go along with his powerful swing. Keep an eye on this young man the next few years.]]>Thu, 12 Apr 2012 11:20:07 GMT